If you’ve ever wondered how to see American Idol live, then read on for information on tickets, what to wear, and the live taping studio audience experience!
Y’all I am still kind of shook we saw American Idol live! I haven’t watched American Idol in years but let me just tell you I vividly remember watching Carrie Underwood win the show in 2005 over Bo Bice. American Idol was a weekly staple in my household growing up. We’d watch the performances on Tuesday nights, vote on our landline phone in the family room, and then watch the results show on Wednesday. I honestly miss these days because now with streaming services and basically unlimited content, TV watching is so fragmented and there are very few shows that ALL my friends and family watch that are basically cultural staples.
I have been to tapings of Live with Regis and Kelly in New York and the Late Late Show with James Corden in Los Angeles, but I had never heard of any of my friends going to American Idol. At some point during my time in LA, probably when I was in college or unemployed, I had signed up for emails from On Camera Audiences but had been ignoring them for a while since most tapings were during the week when I have work. I saw American Idol in the subject line one day, and I opened the email and discovered there was a taping on a weekend!
How to get tickets for American Idol 2023
You can sign up for free tickets to American Idol and other game shows (Jeopardy, Family Feud) and competition shows (America’s Got Talent, American Ninja Warrior) on Oncameraaudiences.com. For other shows like The Voice and some movie premieres, you can check out 1iota.com.
I got an email on a Tuesday that there were more tickets released for American Idol on that Sunday, May 14. I signed up for 2 tickets, which is the max you could sign up for, so my roommate Jordan could come with me. It did not feel legit at all, they didn’t email me a confirmation or send me tickets with a barcode as a pdf attachment. There was just a link once I input my preferred email and I just had to save that link and screenshot the ticket once I got to the final screen. There were a ton of instructions about when to arrive, parking, and what to wear. I noticed they even sent out an email a couple of hours before the show saying there were still tickets available to fill in more of the studio.
What to wear and bring:
There are rules regarding what you can and can’t wear for any live taping show. This is what the rules were for this particular episode of American Idol. Most of the show is live and it’s broadcast across America on national television, so it’s important that people wear the right thing. For this particular taping, they wanted bright “day glow” colors because it was Disney Day. They didn’t allow open-toe shoes and it was A LOT of standing.
The event staff will not let you in if you are dressed inappropriately, so you were warned. Straight from the ticket information:
- DRESS CODE IS STRICTLY ENFORCED and you will be turned away if you do not adhere to the dress code: Hip, upscale attire is mandatory. Colorful, spring colors are requested, day glow colors are encouraged.
- PLEASE WEAR CLOSE-TOED, FLAT SHOES: NO OPEN-TOED SHOES OR HEELS ARE ALLOWED FOR SAFETY REASONS.
- ABSOLUTELY no apparel with logos of any kind on the front or back are allowed in the studio audience.
- ABSOLUTELY no t-shirts, sweatshirts, white tops, shorts, or flip flops. Please wear close-toed, flat shoes: no open-toed shoes or heels are allowed for safety reasons.
- We prefer you don’t wear jeans, but if you do wear jeans, please make sure that they are NICE jeans, preferably colored jeans. You will be on camera so it is very important that you dress nicely. When you look great, the show looks great!
- Security requests you downsize your bags. No backpacks, large bags/purses, or suitcases will be allowed. Small clutches with straps, belt bags or cross body bags are a good option. There is no bag check on site. If you do not adhere to these rules, you will be turned away.
- WE ENCOURAGE SIGNS, BUT PLEASE NO SIGNS BIGGER THAN 3 x 4 AND NO SIGNS WITH LOGOS OR ADS. PLEASE NOTE- SIGNS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE PIT. IF YOU HAVE A SIGN AND YOU ARE IN THE PIT, YOU CAN HAND IT OFF TO SOMEONE IN THE STANDS.
- CELL PHONES ARE ENCOURAGED! Bring your phone so that you can take pictures and vote during the breaks. Professional cameras are not allowed inside the studio.
Jordan wore a plain purple sweater and I wore a green floral dress and a jean jacket. We both wore Nike sneakers.
Getting to the Studio:
American Idol isn’t always filmed in Hollywood proper. I remember one season they were at The Orpheum theater in downtown LA. Thankfully they were in Hollywood this time (never thought I’d be thankful for that) at Red Studios, and they had easy parking at an elementary school a block away.
The ticket information said to arrive by 3pm and we arrived at 2pm, thinking we’d be one of the first people in line and could maybe be able to get a seat in the theater instead of standing in the pit. There were already probably 50 people there. We checked in, they gave us wristbands, and they told us there would likely only be standing room since it was Disney Night on Idol, so a bunch of Disney executives had reserved the seats. They also told us that there would be a pre-tape with Sara Bareilles so that was cool.
We went to the bathroom at the little bathroom pods and then went to stand in line where they told us to wait. I was surprised to see people of all ages. There were a noticeable amount of kids, probably because it was Disney night. A guy came through the line recording bits for social media and asking people who they were excited to see and even asked some people to sing.
They started to let people into the studio right before 3pm. There was a quick pass through a metal detector and then we were in!
Everyone was ushered through an entrance in the pit where it was standing room only. We were standing diagonally behind the judges table. It was kind of weird to be so close together with other people, it’s hard to imagine we were still kind of in a pandemic a year ago.
If you’re short, definitely go straight to the front near the stage so you will be able to see.
The Studio Audience Experience
We were standing inside for the whole time, from 4pm to 7pm, and it was pretty warm in the studio with all the people and lights. There were no food or drinks (except water bottles from check-in). There were audience coordinators who were watching everything, making sure we were ready for the live show. They were extremely attentive. As we were entering the building, one woman had a plastic cup and asked the man in front of us to spit out his gum just as he was walking by. The instructions had said no big bags, so I brought my belt bag. An audience coordinator called me out since I was wearing it across my body and the strap was showing so then I adjusted it so it was around my waist and the camera wouldn’t be able to see it.
The coordinators would select people who had dressed to impress with the bright colors and Mickey ears for Disney Day to be in the front section right by the main stage and the judges, so if you want to be on TV a lot, be sure to wear what they specify in the instructions. My roommate and I didn’t care about being on TV, we were just there for the experience, and we stayed near the back, behind the judge’s table, diagonally behind Luke Bryan.
Closer to the show, the audience coordinators went over clapping and told us to bring the energy. We were allowed to bring our phones which was fun and we could take as many pictures and videos as we wanted before the show.
PRE-TAPING
Not to ruin the movie magic, but several segments of American Idol are pre-taped. Sara Bareilles did the opening When You Wish Upon a Star song in pretty much one take at 4pm, and she was fabulous. Then, we waited another hour until the live show started. Since this was a live show, we were able to keep our phones and take photos when we weren’t filming, since there was no way to spoil what happens. For shows that aren’t broadcast live like The Voice auditions or late night shows, you are not allowed to bring your phones into the studio.
LIVE SHOW
Because the show is live, everything happens on a very tight schedule to make sure we are done within the timeframe that the show is allotted on the network and break on time for commercials. If you’ve never been to a live taping, you’ll see that shows are run very professionally and everything is done very efficiently.
We started taping at 5pm sharp and were done at 7pm. There were several other pre-taped segments of the contestants at Disneyland which they played on the big screens. Really the only thing that was live recorded are the performances and judging. All the contestants were incredible!!
There was a segment with Hannah Brown from The Bachelorette, so that was a fun additional celebrity sighting.
COMMERCIAL BREAKS
We were allowed to take photos during the commercial breaks. Katy and Lionel were mostly on their phones (celebrities, they’re just like us!). Luke Bryan was engaging with a lot of fans during every commercial break, taking selfies and signing autographs. Ryan Seacrest would also sometimes interact with fans.
After the American Idol Taping
My parents watched the live show and caught a glimpse of me in the audience. We were toward the back, so we weren’t on TV that much.
Again, I will stress that it is A LOT standing and it was so hot in the studio that Katy Perry made a comment at the beginning of the show so that’s when they actually tried to do something about the AC.
Overall, it was a fun experience, but we were exhausted and dehydrated afterward. We grabbed dinner at Pink Taco in West Hollywood a few miles away and then went to bed.
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